Month: January 2016

Internet columnist Lydia Grange is on the brink of the promotion she’s wanted for two years. As lead columnist of the Toronto Times’ women’s issue site, she’ll have the fame she longs for, the money to fuel her shopping obsession, and all the free shoes she can wear. Only one obstacle remains: beating her coworkers (Sasha the perfect mother and Patricia the bargain-obsessed senior) in a competition. All three must be ‘good to themselves’ for four weeks and teach their readers to do the same, and at the end of the time their sexy boss Felix will pick the winner.

Lydia’s certain she will be that winner, and not just because she knows Felix wants her on an unprofessional level. She’s never anything but good to herself, so how could she not win? Fancy drinks with extra whipped cream, the cheesecake she adores, the exquisite but pricey purse she’s been craving? With the help of her nice-guy buddy and coworker Percy, she’ll just indulge herself even more and make sure her fans do the same. In a month both the job and her long-desired fling with Felix will be hers.

It’ll be the easiest four weeks of her life.

Unless it turns out there’s more to self-care than sex and shopping and sugar.

Heather Wardell’s Toronto series is an interconnected reading experience, where you can jump in with any book but will get a few extra surprises with old characters and tie in jumping in to future books. I love these kinds of series, and since our library is GTA based as well, the Toronto connection was absolutely a bonus. I’ll not only be reading more books in this series, but I can see so many of our readers loving this series. Not to worry though, even if you’re not Canadian, this was still an enjoyable read for any fans of

Overall, the tone of this story is optimistic and fun to read, and I immediately connected with Lydia. It can be hard sometime to be a goal oriented career woman. It’s not always clear what the best way to move forward is, or how much is too much to sacrifice and this book does a great job of weaving those ideas into the narrative.

There were a few points in the story that dragged a little when I really wanted to get back to the plot and have things progressing again, but the moments were small and didn’t really detract from my enjoyment of the book.

They come to see us bleed.
Roo is trapped in a performance nightmare, where the longer he survives, the greater the chance he will have to remind the other men, that they have a chance to fight against their alien captives.

I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect with this title as Watching‘s blurb doesn’t offer all that much in terms of a synopsis, but it ended up being a genuinely enjoyable read all the same, maybe even more so because I wasn’t sure what I was getting into. That being said, I am going to go into a little more information below, so if you don’t want to know the details, just know that I’d absolutely recommend this book for fans of dark science fiction.

Roo has been captured by a race of blood thirsty aliens who are keeping him as some sort of twisted pet, expecting both entertainment and blood. Of course, things would be a little boring if it weren’t for Roo’s spirit and desire to fight back. He’s in a fairly bleak situation, so it’s an interesting journey to follow that will at times have you frantically turning pages to find out who makes it to the end of the book.

This is a fairly quick read and I do wish there was a little more to the story. Still, as far as one-sitting reads go, you can’t go wrong with this one!

Lily Lightfoot can make weird things happen, just by telling a story. It’s a gift she can’t always control, making her the queen of seventh grade outcasts. She can’t make a million dollars appear out of thin air or make it rain cupcakes, but it’s not for lack of trying. More than anything, she wants to see her mom, who’s left her in the care of her unconventional grandmother, Gwendolyn, and her only friend, Peter. When Lily finds a strange fairytale book, she’s drawn into a fantasy world where her mother waits for her. Lily is convinced the book she’s been reading is real. According to the book, those dark forces now threaten to destroy her mother. Despite the dire warnings of Gwendolyn and Peter, Lily embarks on a mission to find a way into the fantasy world to save her mom. The events she sets into motion with the telling of a story will change all of their lives forever.

I was interested in this book based on the first line of the blurb alone. Add in that stunning cover and there was no way I was walking away from the opportunity to read this. The main character in this story (the first in a trilogy) follows Lily Lightfoot who has a gift for telling stories… and can make things happen by doing so! It’s a pretty magical concept, and one I think quite a few young readers who are already book lovers will enjoy.

There are a lot of great characters in this story to root for as well, and I think that’s what’s going to keep readers coming back for more. Lily did come off a little younger than I expected at times, but that only endeared her to me further and I’ll be interested to see how she grows through the later books in this series should I have the opportunity to read them. Peter is also worthy of a shout out in the character section. Go team!

Overall, this was the perfect middle grade book to start the year with. I very much enjoyed it and can see it being a great selection for many young readers.

A red carpet and one look was all it took to ignite the spark between Sachi Waters and mega-star Drayke Sloan. With a proposition that is typically left in the movies, the two find themselves consuming each other in a whirlwind weekend. But when Sunday night rolls around, Sachi finds she didn’t just give Drayke her body, but her heart, too. He promised to stay in touch. But after months without a word, she gave up hope. Until life threw them together again. The spotlight, the fans, their past all working together to keep these two apart. Can their love overcome it all?

Review
Stars in Her Eyes is an unbelievably fun, whirlwind romance ride. This is a wish fulfillment type scenario and I know a whole lot of readers who will love this story from beginning to end! Sachi and Drayke have undeniable chemistry, but their lives are far from simple and the mega-heat between them might not be enough.

Drayke himself made for a great, swoonworthy romance lead and managed to be someone I really adored despite his celebrity status. There’s a lot to like about him! Add in Sachi, who I’m sure a lot of readers could see themselves being friends with and you have a couple that is impossible not to root for.